Enmity Tension
by nirvana18
Summary: Lon'qu meets Robin and can't stand her, and the feelings are certainly returned. Rated T for mild language.
1. Chapter 1

I got a few suggestions for stories, and one that intrigued me was a harem for male or female Robin. This story isn't based off of that idea, but I will definitely be thinking up a plot line. Until I have a concrete plan for that, please enjoy this story. Also, to those who suggested it or anyone really, PM your ideas/characters you'd like to see used~ thanks guys!

* * *

Lon'qu had loved life as Basilio's prized swordsman. So long as he was strong enough to best any champion Flavia brought along, the West-Khan didn't care what he did with himself. Lon'qu had only one request: minimal interaction with any women. Basilio made endless fun of him, but Lon'qu silently endured as always. And in the end, Basilio made him as comfortable as possible.

Time passed slowly for him during those years he was undefeated. He spent much of his time training. He had confidence in his own strength, but it couldn't hurt to practice. And practice he did, so much that his sword felt more like an extension of his arm rather than a weapon.

Basilio gave him odd jobs around Ferox. During those years Lon'qu only really interacted with the few male friends he'd made and of course Basilio; but he had managed to tolerate the presence of one woman- mainly due to Basilio constantly assigning him to protect her.

Olivia was at least as timid as he; they rarely spoke to each other whenever he accompanied her to make sure she arrived safely to do her dances. He would stand at the back of the theater as she danced; making sure no one seemed suspicious. They did talk a few times over the years, and Lon'qu got at least slightly comfortable around her. But her dancer's uniform ensured he was never truly at ease.

Olivia's position at Ferox was different from his. Years ago some nobleman saw her dancing and fell under the spell of her gracefulness and narrow hips. He'd attempted to kidnap her and forcibly make her his bride, but Basilio had rescued her heroically. Olivia had agreed to come to Ferox where she could be constantly protected. She repaid Basilio's kindness by giving him a large part of the gold she made as a dancer. Basilio treated and protected her like a daughter.

Lon'qu was treated more like a pawn, something that he was fine with. He would give his strength to Basilio any time he needed it and then do whatever he wanted for the rest of the time.

Until that damned last tournament.

He'd met Marth when the man had come into Ferox with no invitation, demanding Basilio to bring out his strongest man for him to fight. Lon'qu, at Basilio's side, had turned to the Khan and tightened his grip on the handle of his sword, silently asking for permission to begin the match.

Because he'd certainly hadn't thought he would lose. Marth was much shorter than him and very tiny. Lon'qu had the physical advantage, but Marth's skill surpassed his own. Barely, but it was enough. Basilio had watched in shock as a healer came and helped him limp out of the room.

He was informed that Marth would replace him as the champion at this year's tournament. He avoided seeing Marth at all costs. Something about that man made him very, very uneasy…

He rested his wounds in humiliation. Olivia visited him a few times, her eyes full of pity.

He was almost happy when Marth lost Basilio the tournament a few days later. Basilio called Lon'qu back to his side, and the swordsman had assumed that everything would be as it was.

But Basilio gave him to the Shepherds. Lon'qu hid the betrayal he felt quite well. He'd had years of practice at keeping his bored, uninterested face on. Still, his natural tendency for anxiety made him want to beg his master to keep him- what would life be like serving under Chrom?

* * *

Turned out Chrom wasn't anything like he'd expected. The prince gave him simple rules to keep- ones that Lon'qu wouldn't have broken anyway. Basilio had told Chrom of his fear of women, but if Chrom cared he never mentioned it. He gave him his own tent and showed him around camp, and then turned him over to Robin for his tactician to "see his strength in battle."

Robin led him to the training area for the Shepherds. That was where the true torment began.

Robin was a tall, thin woman with a loud voice. She was touchy too, which was like a nightmare for Lon'qu. She'd followed him and Chrom around as Chrom had shown him the camp, already putting him on edge. Thankfully she'd kept quiet although she was obviously staring at Lon'qu.

As soon as Chrom had left, she'd stood on her tip-toes and leaned up toward him, shielding her eyes from the sun. "Wow," she'd said, "You sure are tall!"

He couldn't back away fast enough. His heart was going crazy. He bit on the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood. This woman would be the death of him, he could already tell.

She ignored his reaction and stepped toward him again; looking him up and down as if he were an animal she was considering buying. "Well, you _look _strong enough, but the only way for me to determine where to place you in battle is to test that myself," she said cheerfully, pulling out a sword from inside her cloak.

She began tying back her long white hair, oblivious to Lon'qu look of horror.

In all the time he'd been Basilio's champion, he'd never had to fight a woman. Already his hands were shaking at the thought, and he hadn't even drawn his sword yet. He felt his face turning red as she finished tying her hair and looked at him expectantly, golden eyes narrowed.

"What?" She finally demanded as it became apparent he wasn't going to draw his sword. "Cat got your tongue?"

He shook his head, trying to stop his hands from trembling. She took a step forward, her expression becoming cross. "Basilio told us about your fear of women, and I think that's ridiculous. No woman here would ever harm a comrade, I assure you. So draw your sword!"

Anger coursed through him. Who did this woman think she was? He inhaled deeply and drew his sword, noting that Robin held her own blade in her left hand.

The fight didn't last long.

Lon'qu disarmed her in a minute, wanting more to end the match than for her to "test his strength herself." She landed on the grass with a soft thud as he forced her down, her sword now lying ten feet away. He sheathed his weapon and stepped back away, crossing his arms smugly.

She stood slowly, rubbing her sore backside with one hand as she retrieved her sword and stuck it in the ground, leaning against it as she stared him down.

Lon'qu looked away, but he could feel her eyes on him. His sweat now had nothing to do with the spar he'd just had with her.

Finally she cleared her throat, waiting until he looked up at her for a millisecond and away again before she spoke. "Well, your strength is considerable. I think I have the perfect place for you…"

* * *

She'd assigned him to be the partner of a woman named Tharja in battle. He resented the tactician so much for that, an obvious attempt to make him as unhappy as possible.

Thankfully, Tharja didn't seem to care much for talking. She assisted him in battle well but never seemed to even want to know his name or notice when he flinched away when she came too close to him. Her magic was as strong as his swordsmanship. The only issue he had with her was her deep love for Robin; which was as deep as his dislike for the tactician.

Overall, the first few weeks as a Shepherd were hell. But he became slowly comfortable with the large amount of woman around camp, at least as comfortable as he would ever be.

He avoided Robin whenever he could, receiving orders from her before each battle and then leaving as quickly as possible. Life here was tolerable, but he missed Ferox desperately.

One day he might return. Until then he would make the most of the hand he'd be dealt.


	2. Chapter 2

There was one thing about life with the Shepherds that Lon'qu found preferable to the live he'd had at Ferox: his skill with the sword was certainly improving.

He could see now why Robin had placed him with Tharja. While her attacks were powerful and _usually _took down an enemy in one hit, if they managed to get close to the dark mage then she was in major trouble. That was where Lon'qu came in: she stunned them with magic, he finished them off quickly. All the while he was keeping an eye out for anyone who could see through their strategy and tried to separate them or target Tharja specifically.

Having to constantly protect someone and sometimes take on several enemies at once was making him stronger, and more important, more skillful. He wouldn't be bested again.

On this day they had probably taken out dozens of Risen that had attacked a defenseless town nearby. Robin, as always, had led everyone into battle and ensured that no one was injured or hurt. Despite his dislike for the woman, he had to admit that she could see the flow of battle in a special way that brought them to victory every time.

She was also a lot more proficient with her magic than she was with her sword. Her multitasking was also admirable, she shouted orders while taking down enemies with her preferred Tome- Grima's Truth. She did occasionally use her sword, but she obviously was more skilled with magic than with other weapons.

Tharja was filing- sharpening? - her nails after the last Risen were killed, paying him no mind as usual. He could function just fine near her so long as she didn't look at him, which she rarely did.

He was watching her work at her nails from the corner of his eye so he didn't notice Robin walk up behind him, until she tapped him on the back.

He jumped and caught his breath, his face instantly turning red. Robin sighed and shook her head, looking down at the clipboard she was holding.

"You okay?" She questioned, muttered, looking him over with a raised eyebrow.

He nodded. This was routine by now, she always asked every soldier if they needed medical attention after every battle. He inched out of the way as Tharja pushed past him to talk to Robin, the dark mage's face actually looking semi-happy for once.

Robin looked at Tharja's "injured" wrist thoroughly. "I don't think it's broken, Tharja," she said kindly, "Maybe just a sprain. You should go see Lissa if it's really bothering you-"

Lon'qu grunted and picked up his sword, hauling it over his shoulder. The walk back to camp was going to take a long time, might as well get started now.

* * *

Later that day, Lon'qu was lying on his cot miserably. Sleep always was hard for him to get, his legs were restless. He wanted to get up and run a while, but he needed this nap. He was on night patrol for the camp tonight, and if he didn't sleep now he'd be exhausted for his watch.

Just as he was relaxed and starting to drift off, Robin walked into his tent. He shot up and frantically pulled up his blanket to cover his bare chest.

Robin rolled her eyes. "Oh please. Get up, we have to go. Maribelle's been kidnapped and Emmeryn has already left to go speak with King Gangrel."

* * *

Robin was frantically trying to keep the situation under control. Chrom had suggested they bring along a few of their strongest Shepherds and accompany his sister, but he'd left the choices up to her. She knew her decisions would be vital if anything were to go wrong.

Which it did. Over the course of a few hours, Emmeryn was dead and the army was retreating with the help of Basilio. Chrom seemed to be in shock as they arrived back in camp.

Everyone was soaked and absolutely exhausted, it had taken several hours to outrun the enemy. It'd also been raining for the entire march back to camp. Lissa had kept up a steady stream of tears the whole time, her blue eyes swollen and red. Gaius put an arm around the princess and led her away to her tent, offering her candy- an extreme sacrifice for the sweet-loving redhead.

Chrom watched them go with a blank expression, turning to Frederick and waving away the knight's concern. Frederick sighed and walked away, probably going to inform the rest of the camp of Emmeryn's fate…

Robin put a hand on Chrom's shoulder, shivering in the freezing rain. He gently moved away from her touch, shaking his head. "I can't right now, Robin," he muttered, "I don't want to talk about this."

She nodded and dutifully did a little half-bow, something Chrom teased her about when he was in better spirits. She turned and trekked through the mud, shrugging her cloak off and folding it over her arm. Her clothes were already soaked; there was no need to go to her tent immediately.

So she found an isolated tree that was a decent while away from the last tent in camp and curled up under it, allowing herself to cry as silently as possible. She actually was quite emotional and all, but she liked the persona of "Chrom's Ruthless Tactician." If she were being true to her personality, every time she saw someone fall in battle she'd burst into tears. Or every time she thought of her life and realized she lost so much of it due to amnesia.

But now she cried in earnest, the rain falling roughly on her bare arms and filling her boots.

She cried for Chrom and Lissa and the whole country of Ylisse's loss. Emmeryn was the best ruler they'd had in a long time, and now because of Robin's poor planning they'd lost her. Chrom would have to be the Exalt, something she knew he wasn't prepared for. All of this because she'd failed.

She sneezed as the rain finally lightened up, rubbing her eyes clear of her tears and realizing that her throat was incredibly sore. Great, now she was sick on top of everything. She lifted her chin from her knees, still trying to catch her breath from the crying jag.

Lon'qu was standing a few feet away, his face as bored-looking as always. He met her eyes and raised an eyebrow, not moving him his position. From the look of his equally soaked clothes, he'd been at there for a long time.

She cursed under her breath, her voice incredibly hoarse, picking up her cloak and trying to stand. Aside from her throat being sore, it seemed her strength had abandoned her in the half-hour she'd sat under the tree.

He approached her and lifted her effortlessly by the arm with one hand, breaking the contact as soon as she was firmly on her feet. She huffed in annoyance and marched away with as much dignity as she could with water squishing in her boots.

"Are you okay?"

She flinched at the sound of his deep voice as if he'd slapped her, continuing in her march to her tent. "Just fine," she snapped, her anger less impressive because of her scratchy throat.

She could hear him still following her but she refused to turn and face him. She was too mortified.

He suddenly jogged in front of her, the closest he'd ever come near her voluntarily. To her extreme shock, he pressed his hand against her forehead. She was so surprise that she forgot her anger for a moment, staring at him as he looked fixedly over her head.

"You have a fever," he informed her, dropping his hand.

Now that he'd said that, she could feel how cold she was in her wet clothes. She shivered involuntarily, sneezing violently before beginning her walk again.

She could definitely feel some nausea settling in now. She was _not _going to vomit in front of this silent man who obviously disliked her for absolutely no reason.

He continued to follow her and she whirled on her heel when he had the nerve to actually enter her tent behind her. "Get out," she said weakly, throwing her cloak unto the floor and glaring.

He shook his head, little droplets of water falling down his face onto the floor. "You're sick," he said, stating the obvious.

She didn't have enough time to argue. Quick as her weak body would possibly allow her, she emptied her trash can of the balled-up papers and such onto the floor and threw up into it noisily.

He held her hair as she puked.

When she was through she looked up to see him looking at her intently, his dark eyes almost… concerned.

"I hate you," she moaned, the nausea causing her whole body to shake violently and her mouth to water.

He half-smiled at her, still holding her long hair out of her face. She noticed now that he had a strong grip on her shoulder.

"I know," he replied, wincing as she leaned over the trash bin and was sick a second time.


	3. Chapter 3

Robin awoke the next morning in her bed with her blanket tucked around her snugly.

Her fever seemed to have broken; she was sweating as she kicked off the thick quilt and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Examining herself, she saw that sometime last night someone- she certainly didn't remembering doing it herself- had peeled off her wet things and put her in the spare clothes she kept around her tent.

Her face burst into a blush as she remembered the events from the night before.

Lon'qu had held her hair as threw up four times, even rubbing her back soothingly as she emptied her lunch into her trash bin. She'd weakly protested his presence between spewing her guts out, but he'd stayed with her for the entire time.

She couldn't remember much after that. Vomiting and dry heaving must've exhausted her to the point of falling asleep right on the floor. As she hopped out of her bed and began cleaning her tent with renewed energy, she hoped vehemently that it hadn't been Lon'qu to change her out of her wet clothes, which were drying neatly on the back of a chair in the corner.

The sound of someone clearing their throat made her jump and reach for her sword automatically, but her cloak and sword were lying on the floor where'd she left them.

Lon'qu lifted his hands in a peaceful gesture, moving slowly as not to frighten her further.

"Sorry," he mumbled, "I was just checking on you."

He had dark purple circles under his eyes, and his clothes were still stuck to his skin from being wet. How long had he stayed up with her last night, making sure she was okay?

"You didn't change my clothes, did you?" She asked anxiously.

He shook his head violently, black eyes widening. "Gods, no. Panne was outside last night and I… I asked her," he said guiltily, avoiding her eyes.

She sighed in relief. Panne was a lot better than Lon'qu. She could admit she was overly modest.

"You asked Panne?" She wondered aloud.

"Yes," he replied slowly. "I left the tent while she, ah, helped you."

Robin was confused. Why had he done all these things for her? He was afraid of women, for Naga's sake! Asking Panne for help must've been a stretch for him. Maybe because she was not human, he didn't have the same fear for her? Possible, but not likely.

"And then I put you in your bed," he continued, oblivious to her confusion. "You're a lot lighter than you look," he commented dryly, his tone emotionless.

Robin ignored that last bit. Suddenly bashful, she lowered her amber eyes to the floor.

"Why'd you help me?"

"Because you needed it. Why were you crying?"

She looked up and glared at him, but for once he held her gaze. Her angry expression faded when she realized she was in his debt. She could at least answer his question.

"Because I _failed_." Her voice cracked on the last word, her lower lip trembling as she recalled the sickening sound Emmeryn's body made as it hit the ground…

"It's not your fault," Lon'qu said so quietly that her ears had to strain to hear him. "No one blames you."

Robin shook her head. It didn't matter if anyone blamed her or not.

Lon'qu sighed and turned away, stopping when Robin grabbed his still-wet sleeve. "Thanks," she said sincerely, giving him a small smile before releasing him.

As he left it occurred to her that someone who hated her would've left her alone in the rain last night. And they certainly would not have taken such good care of her.

* * *

A few hours later, Robin had finally gathered enough bravery to leave her tent. Lon'qu had told her no one blamed her, but she didn't believe him. She had prepared herself for the glares she was sure she'd get, but no one seemed to look at her differently as she made her way to lunch. Everyone did seem to be in sadder spirits than usual, but they going about their day as normally as possible- with the exception of Chrom, Lissa, and Frederick, of course.

Panne was sitting on a tabletop with a tray of food, apparently waiting for her.

Robin was forced to sit down by a pair of very strong- and furry- hands. Panne mentioned for her to begin eating and Robin immediately obeyed, shoving a carrot into her mouth. Honestly, the taguel frightened her a little.

"You look better than you did last night, human," Panne said, watching her eat closely.

Robin swallowed painfully and nodded, awkwardly avoiding the woman's red eyes. "Yes, I feel much better. Thank you for the… help."

Panne snorted. "You clung to me like a young taguel to their mother," she said, causing Robin's face to turn pink. "But I got you out of your wet things. Never have I seen a man-spawn so sick."

Not knowing how to reply, Robin continued munching on the carrot.

"Then the other human carried you to bed and sat beside you," Panne went on, her low voice amused. "The taguel are not so weak; we do not coddle each other. You humans are frail."

The tactician nodded absently, distracted at the thought of Lon'qu sitting beside her.

* * *

Admittedly, Lon'qu had watched her cry with no clue as to what to do. He knew anyone normal would go to her and comfort her, but he was afraid… he'd end up making her cry even more, knowing how he was with words and comforting in general. He hadn't even known this woman who directed the deaths of thousands of Risen was even capable of tears.

So now there was an extreme tension between them as he stood in line for orders. She kept looking at him as if he wasn't already looking at her, her eyes dropping immediately to her clipboard whenever their gazes met.

"Tharja and Lon'qu," she said in greeting as the pair approached her, fully armored with their weapons ready to go. "Today I want you next to Nowi and Gregor. Horses are beside the training grounds; Frederick will be leading us to the town. Expect lots of Risen."

Tharja nodded adoringly and headed to get a horse while Lon'qu hung back and waited.

Finally Robin looked up from her clipboard like she'd just noticed he was still standing there, right next to her. "What?" She asked bluntly, pushing an errant hair out of her eyes.

"Are you sure you should be fighting today?" he asked quietly.

Her eyebrows furrowed together in displeasure, a little line appearing between her gold eyes.

"I'm fine," she whispered back.

He grunted his disapproval and walked after Tharja. There was no changing her mind when she'd decided on something.

* * *

Lon'qu was where he most enjoyed being: in the middle of a difficult fight.

When Robin had said to expect a lot of Risen, she wasn't kidding. The Shepherds were outnumbered at least five to one, but their skills far exceeded those of the slow, bloody enemies that had been tormenting the poor villagers of the town for days.

Tharja let out a terrifying laugh as she struck down two Risen with a flick of her wrist.

Lon'qu circled around her closely, killing his enemies with ease. But no matter how many he took down, more came to take their place.

He wiped the sweat from his brown with his furred sleeve, loosening and then tightening his hold on his sword. His hand was starting to go numb from gripping the handle for so long…

Not far beside him, Gregor was shouting nonsense at his prey as he killed them with the energy of a much younger man. A huge yellow-green dragon hovered over their heads, occasionally shooting fire down on the Risen with careful accuracy and deadly heat. Every time Nowi attacked, Lon'qu felt as if the whole world got a few degrees warmer.

Everyone seemed to be fighting well. This battle would be a victory, and they'd all be stronger afterwards.

He saw it from too far away, there was nothing he could do but watch it happen.

Robin was on a horse, a rare thing for her. He knew she was still weak from her illness the night before, which was probably the reasoning behind using the horse. She was shouting orders as loud as her sore throat could manage, paying more attention to her comrades than her surroundings…

Three Risen approached with unusual speed and knocked her off the horse with brute force, surrounding her before she even had a chance to hit the ground.

Lon'qu was running then, waiting for the screaming to start. But Robin was silent as the Risen leaned over her, hiding her from his view…

He killed all three with a single swipe of his sword, kicking away the heavy bodies in disgust.

Robin was curled up on the ground with her arms over her head, shaking so violently her teeth were chattering. She looked up at him from behind her fingers, tears filling her wide eyes.

He instinctively reached down and hefted her up, her whole body shuddering as he tried clumsily to get her to stand on her own. But her feet were refusing to take her weight.

She was in shock, it seemed. He looked down and gasped in horror when he saw several bloody teeth marks from the Risen across her collarbone.

The horse she'd been knocked down from was long gone by now, so he'd have to carry her.

With a grunt, he lifted her entirely in his arms. She pressed her face into his chest as he awkwardly tried to support her and hold his sword at the same time.

Thankfully, Henry came to the rescue. The dark mage appeared as if from nowhere and gracefully killed a Risen that had been approaching them. He smiled broadly at Lon'qu and mentioned for the swordsman to follow him.

Henry led them safely to Frederick, protecting them from Risen with his magic along the way.

Frederick immediately dismounted his horse and took Robin while Lon'qu climbed up onto the animal, then lifted Robin up in front of Lon'qu effortlessly. "I can handle things here. Get her to Maribelle," the knight instructed, hitting the horse's side to send it off.

Robin was nestled in front of Lon'qu securely, still shuddering slightly. Lon'qu leaned over her protectively, silently urging the horse to go faster.

* * *

She came out of her shock when they were about half a mile from camp. Her arms were suddenly wrapped around his waist uncomfortably tight, her pale face puckered in pain.

He almost preferred she'd stayed in shock. At least then she wasn't able to feel her injuries.

"We're almost there, we're almost there," he assured her like a chant, feeling her hot blood soak through his shirt. She whimpered in response, her grip becoming impossibly tighter.

* * *

"And you really should be more careful, darling. What would this army even do without you?"

Lon'qu knew that Maribelle meant well, but he still found the blonde to be incredibly annoying.

Robin nodded at the healer's words though, her injuries now treated and bandaged well. She had seven bite marks across her neck and down onto her collarbone, three broken fingers, and a broken rib in total. Needless to say she'd been lucky it hadn't been even worse than that.

"My poor husband would be lost without you, dear. Chrom is no tactician," Maribelle continued to lecture, her tone superior. Robin nodded again, wincing slightly after the movement.

Lon'qu stepped forward and with exceptional care lifted Robin into his arms, bridal style.

Maribelle pursed her lips and began putting away her medical supplied neatly. "Get her to her tent and make sure she sleeps," she ordered bossily.

He was more than happy to obey. He tried to keep from jostling Robin as he walked; he knew firsthand how the tiniest movements made a broken rib ache.

Despite his efforts, Robin caught her breath and bit down on her lip. He wasn't sure which injury was hurting her, but he increased his speed. The sooner she was in bed, the better.

They finally arrived, and he slid her onto the cot with as much care as he could manage. She clung to his arm when he tried to step away from her, her face covered in a thin layer of sweat. "Thank you," she mumbled.

He nodded and sat awkwardly on the edge of her bed as he'd done before. She'd been asleep that time; she was definitely awake now.

"Com'ere," she said, tugging on his shirt to lower him down to her.

He leaned forward until he was close enough for her to lean up and peck his cheek lightly, her face becoming red from the effort.

"Ouch," she huffed, lying back against her bed and closing her eyes.

His cheek tingled where she'd kissed it. He watched her drift to sleep silently, wondering where his fear had gone to.

* * *

Robin has terrible luck in this story. Poor thing.


	4. Chapter 4

Due to her broken rib, Robin had been forbidden to walk for a few weeks or even do any of her battle plans in bed. Maribelle insisted she needed to rest mentally _and _physically. Of course she did anyway, begging Lon'qu to bring her the giant notebook to her bed so she could draw out plans for him to deliver to Chrom. He'd refuse, but she looked so pitiful, pleading for his help until he'd finally get the blasted book for her.

Then she'd be hunched over the damned thing, her breaths coming out in painful little wheezes.

After hours of writing and erasing and drawing, she'd finally hand him a stack of papers and the begging would resume- _"Please, just give these to Chrom. Please? Pleaaaaaaaaaase?" _

He'd refuse some more and she'd look at him with those big yellow eyes with her long white eyelashes and Lon'qu would snatch the papers from her and stomp off, not _really _angry but extremely frustrated with how weak-willed he was when it came to anything she wanted. Chrom would be shake his head as he delivered the papers just before each battle, wondering aloud how Robin even knew when they'd be since she was in bed all day.

Lon'qu would return to her and perch on the edge of her bed, simply keeping her company. He and Panne had an unspoken agreement; he stayed with her during the day, then the taguel would take over at night to help Robin do the things he couldn't- like bathe and change out of her clothes.

This went on for weeks until the three grew quite close. Never had Lon'qu pictured himself spending all of his time with two women, but his fear wasn't exactly of women themselves.

He'd remember Ke'ri's death with a jolt sometimes and his hands would start shaking. Panne, who could hear his heartbeat, would stare at him in confusion as he left as quickly as he could.

He hadn't been able to protect the one he'd loved the most, and he wouldn't be able to protect Panne or Robin or any woman when the time came, Robin's accident proved that. His fear was _for _them, not o_f _them.

But he was fairly certain he was over Ke'ri. Of course he still loved her in his silent way, but that didn't mean he was still _in _love with the dead girl. She rarely crossed his mind in that loving way that she had years before. Now her memory was more of a burden than something he recalled with happiness. He was ready to put her in his past…

He was also fairly certain that he had feelings for Robin.

She irritated him so much. She was bossy and impatient and loud and pushy and touchy and talkative; but she was also thoughtful and kind and beautiful and unaware about that beauty.

Not that she even tried to look nice. Her hair was braided out of her face all day, and she was constantly huddled under her huge cloak. But her eyes were so striking he couldn't look away.

For one thing, her eyelashes were incredibly long and as white as her hair. They thickly framed her light yellow eyes, a most unusual color. Against her pale skin they were especially bright.

He fell in love with her eyes before he even liked anything else about her, but now her little ways were starting to invade his thoughts at random times. The way she worked diligently for everyone else and never took a break, even with broken fingers and when every breath burned on the way out of her lungs.

The way she pouted when he wouldn't do something for her, her lower lip trembling until he finally did whatever she wanted him to do.

But it was likely he'd do anything about these feelings. It didn't work out well for him last time; it probably wouldn't work out this time either. There was no use in trying.

* * *

Robin was pretty happy, despite her injuries and being confined to her bed. She'd tried to get up once and walk, but Lon'qu had threatened to physically tie her down if she did that again.

The broken rib was by far her worst injury. The bites and her fingers had healed within a week while her side continued to ache and burn with every breath she took in and let out. Thankfully she'd make a full recovery, according to Maribelle. She personally thought her fingers looked a little crooked, and she wished the ugly teeth-shaped scars would fade from her skin faster.

But she wasn't going to complain. She had Lon'qu and Panne to keep her company, which was more than she needed. She'd gotten over her irrational fear of Panne as they spent more time together. Mostly because she _had _to; it would be awkward having to rely on someone you were afraid of to take care of you.

Panne simply didn't allow any awkwardness. She'd support Robin's weight as she limped to the bathing pool every night and unceremoniously help her strip off her clothes. Robin didn't really feel ashamed; Panne kept her eyes politely adverted. Mostly she was just thankful for the help.

Lon'qu and Panne spent every spare moment with her so that she always had someone with her; they all three got along pretty well. She occasionally had to smack Lon'qu aside his think head when he said something insensitive, but aside from that things were peaceful in her little tent.

"If your swordsmanship was stronger, this wouldn't have happened," Lon'qu was saying for the tenth time. Robin scowled and crossed her arms over her chest, wincing when the moment sent her rib to aching. She knew her magic was a lot stronger than anything else, she didn't need him to tell her that. Again.

"If I suck so much then why don't _you _teach me, Mr. Know-It-All?" She snapped, ignoring Panne's annoyed sigh. The taguel apparently had little tolerance for any bickering.

"I will, when you're able to get up," he replied, pulling on his long collar absently. Robin's pout deepened; she hadn't expected him to actually agree.

"But that's not fair," she whined, leaning back against her pillows dramatically. "Then I'll be even more in your debt. I have to teach you how to do something."

Lon'qu raised an eyebrow as Panne nodded in understanding. "The taguel repay all debts," she murmured, flattening down one of her furry ears.

"Yeah, so what's something that you _can't _do?" Robin demanded, throwing Panne an appreciative grin for backing her up. Lon'qu considered for a long moment before shrugging indifferently.

"I can't swim," he admitted in his normal bored fashion.

"As soon as Maribelle lets me up, I'll teach you how," she answered happily. "One swimming lesson for one sword lesson… deal?"

Lon'qu shook his head violently, his shaggy brown hair falling into his eyes.

"Why not?" Robin asked, rolling her eyes in frustration.

"I don't want anyone to see my chest," he replied simply, pursing his lips in distaste at the thought.

Panne and Robin simultaneously groaned, earning them both a glare from Lon'qu.

"By 'anyone,' you mean any females," Panne corrected dully.

"Easy solution," Robin said cheerfully, pressing her toe into Lon'qu's leg. He looked down at her foot in distaste but didn't scoot away, to her surprise.

"We'll just go at night," she continued, watching his reaction carefully.

He paused before shaking his head again. "If someone sees us, they'll get the wrong idea," he muttered uncertainly, avoiding her probing eyes.

"Not if we go late enough at night," she insisted. He sighed and shrugged, defeated.

"Excellent," Robin said victoriously. "As soon as I can walk we'll start the lessons."

* * *

"I'm not sure about this, Robin," Lon'qu hissed as his companion continued to tug on his hand, leading him closer and closer to the lake in the center of camp.

She looked back at him and smirked, her white hair shining brightly in the moonlight. "Not-uh, scaredy-pants. You gave me a sword lesson today; it's only fair I teach you how to swim."

The lump in his throat was growing bigger as they finally reached the bank of the lake. He awkwardly extracted his hand from hers as Robin took off her boots and socks and dipped one toe into the water, shivering. "It's cold," she complained, as if this whole thing wasn't her idea.

The thought of cold water made him feel a little better. He was used to the cold, Ferox had snow year-round.

"Oh well," Robin sighed, pulling her cloak off and neatly folding it, placing it on the grass next to her boots and socks.

She'd instructed him to wear a swimsuit under his clothes, and he guessed now was the time to strip down to it. He turned his back to her and pulled off his shirt with his eyes squeezed shut, trying not to think about what he was doing He could hear her humming to herself quietly as he fumbled with removing with his pants. Finally he was in his simple black swimsuit, swallowing nervously before turning to face her again.

She was looking at him with an expression he couldn't read, her face faintly flushed. She had already folded and stacked all her clothes into a neat little pile, leaving her in a similar two-pieced black swimsuit. He hadn't realized how extremely thin she was; because she was tall and always wearing the oversized cloak he'd figured she was more rounded. But no, it looked as if she barely had any muscle or fat anywhere on her tiny body. A huge purple bruise was on her left side from the broken rib.

She cleared her throat and he looked up at her instantly, flinching back when she reached out to take his hand. She frowned and took it anyway, leading him straight into the still water.

It was absolutely freezing; he involuntarily tightened his grip on her hand as she led him up to his shoulders. They were standing in the exact center of the lake now, the night completely silent aside from their own breathing.

She was treading water easily, not able to reach the sandy bottom. Swimming in front of him so they were facing each other, she grabbed his other hand and laced their fingers together tightly.

"Lift up your feet," she whispered, squeezing each of his hands reassuringly.

He inhaled shakily and obeyed, his forehead resting against her shoulder as he leaned forward.

She supported him easily in the water, laughing quietly. "See, you're swimming!"

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, watching how her hair fanned out across the water.

She let go of his hands for a moment and he immediately planted his feet back on the lake's bottom, shivering in the cold water. She patted his forearm lightly and looked up at the moon.

"That's alright, we've got all night," she said dreamily, taking his hands again. "Ready to try again?"

And so he did.

* * *

Thanks for all the positive feedback. Aside from Henry, Lon'qu is my favorite male in Awakening. What about you guys? :)


	5. Chapter 5

Last chapter. Thanks to you guys for your advice and comments, they really make my day. New story should be out super fast; I'm thinking another Lon'qu/Robin. A sequel, perhaps. Anyway, thanks again and enjoy. :)

* * *

Panne stretched her long body underneath the tree, feeling each of her joints pop in unison.

She'd been sleeping- in beast form- long enough for the sun to switch position in the sky. With a yawn, she shifted back in a matter of seconds. Her senses weren't as sharp as she'd liked when she was in "human" form, but it scared some of the Shepherds to see her as "a giant bunny," as they liked to call her.

She adjusted her armor carefully; it had loosened slightly during her nap. A familiar smell distracted her from the task; she looked up and saw Lon'qu approaching. He nodded his head in greeting. Panne scooted over so he could sit and lean against the tree trunk with her.

The improvement in his behavior around her was drastic since that night he'd begged her for her help in taking off Robin's soaked clothes. His heart had been beating violently; he refused to meet her eyes at all. She'd thought that this was because of his fear over Robin's illness, but he continued to do the same long after the girl was well. She realized he was afraid of women.

But now the swordsman was at ease, slouching next to her and chewing on his fingernails.

"Just tell her, man-spawn," Panne sighed, watching the sun slowly sink lower and lower in the sky.

Lon'qu gulped and shook his head, resting his forehead against his knees. "I can't."

"Why not?" She asked, turning her sharp red eyes to meet his dark ones.

If he'd come to be coddled he'd come to the wrong person. She'd told him what he needed to do; any excused were inexcusable. The taguel did not procrastinate; they went after their prey with diligent bravery. She knew securing a mate was probably more difficult than she imagined, but that didn't warrant him any pity in her eyes.

He didn't answer. They sat in compatible silence for a long while. They both weren't much for words anyway, so it suited them. Eventually Panne licked her hand and turned to look at him again. "I assure you she feels the same as you do for her," she muttered.

His reaction was instant and enthusiastic. "How do you know?"

Because the tension between them was so thick that anybody with a brain could feel it; Panne was especially sensitive to that sort of thing. But she didn't feel like explaining that to Lon'qu, so she gave him the simplified version. "It's obvious," she said, adjusting her armor again.

Lon'qu groaned in frustration, standing and storming away.

Panne shrugged and stretched out across the grass in the fading sunlight, thinking maybe she could take another nap. When she awoke, she was sure they would have settled these obvious desires for each other one way or another. In the meantime, she would sleep. The man-spawn did exhaust her so…

* * *

Robin was in the castle of Ylisse, returning to camp from yet another boring meeting with Chrom and all the noblemen. She hated having to sit still in her chair and listen to them drone on and on about politics and Chrom's behavior and stuff that she had absolutely no interest in.

She walked about the stone walls slowly, feeling drained. Whenever she had to be bored for an extensive amount of time it always put her in a grouchy mood.

Hugging her Tome book lightly to her chest, she hummed to herself tunelessly as she trekked the familiar place through the castle. One huge painted portrait caught her attention. It was of Emmeryn. The former Exalt's hair was braided down the front how she liked it, the symbol of her power in the center of her forehead. She hadn't had much chance to talk to Emmeryn before he death, but the sight of her gently smiling face still put a lump in her throat.

She was so transfixed by the painting that she actually cried out in fear when someone pinned her against the wall. Her Tomes dropped to the floor loudly in the silent hallway, and she whirled around to find that it was Lon'qu who had pushed her so roughly. She rubbed her chest poutily, looking up and finally seeing the expression on his face.

His eyebrows were pulled together; there was a dark blush across his nose and under his eyes.

She looked up at him with her mouth in a little "o" shape, her heart beating so violently that sharp pains were going through her long-healed rib. His hands were pressed on either side of her head, his chest pressed against hers; preventing her from moving an inch even if she'd wanted to... which she didn't.

"Hi," he said breathlessly, biting his lower lip as he leaned even more against her.

She flattened her arms against the wall, scraping her fingernails against the impenetrable stone.

She could tell where this was headed though. Having lost all her memory before she'd woken up in that field with Chrom, she had no idea what sort of romantic history she had in what she thought of as her "forgotten previous life." It often made her feel guilty even; what if she'd left behind some lover who would never know what happened to her?

But now she could feel Lon'qu's intentions without him having to tell her. It made her wonder briefly if she'd been very experience before she'd lost her memory, but she couldn't concentrate on that with him standing so close that both of their breaths were mixing together.

She lifted her chin and slowly closed her eyes, puckering her lips and leaning forward ever so slightly, her fingers still pressed into the cold stone behind her.

Lon'qu's nose brushed against hers and she opened one eye when his arms suddenly weren't around her anymore. His hand was pressed against his mouth, his face entirely red. The man's whole body was shaking lightly. A rush of endearment went through her when he lifted his hand from his mouth to his eyes and peeked at her through his fingers. She sighed affectionately and lifted both of her own hands to his face.

She rushed at him too quickly, their lips met at the same time they fell. Lon'qu caught himself with his forearm as they landed heavily on the floor, his other arm around her neck.

To say it was awkward was putting it lightly. Her legs were on either side of his hips, him supporting himself with his left forearm with his right arm holding her face to his tightly.

They kissed sloppily, both completely inexperienced and clumsy. Lon'qu parted his lips slightly and Robin took that as an invitation to poke her tongue into his mouth, earning her a startled gasp from the unsuspecting swordsman, his hand knotting in her hair tightly.

They broke away when a need for oxygen became apparent for both of them. They both panted for air shamelessly, Lon'qu lying down flat on the floor and squeezing the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

Robin sat on his chest and wiped her mouth with her sleeve, watching him struggle to catch his breath unsuccessfully with heavy eyes. She leaned down and pecked his swollen lips as gently as she could manage, her hair curtaining both of their faces.

"Hi," she said as he opened his eyes wide, a half-smile appearing on his handsome face.

* * *

Panne woke with a groan. It was completely dark now, but it wasn't a problem for her eyes to see in the night. She scratched behind her ear as she looked around, disoriented, until two figures caught her attention.

It was Robin and Lon'qu, holding hands and talking as they walked in step with each other. Panne smiled briefly and stood to join them.

She had a lot of "I told you so" to say to them.


End file.
